


Running All Night

by KizaKurosaki15



Series: Two L'Cie/Brother AU [4]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Angst, Brothers AU, Drama, Escape, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture?, L'Cie Ignis, L'Cie Luche Lazarus, M/M, Romance, Torture, Two L'Cie AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-14
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-05-22 00:01:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14925530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KizaKurosaki15/pseuds/KizaKurosaki15
Summary: When a Classified Deployment to Niflheim; Luche and a team of kingsglavie are sent on goes wrong, leaving only Luche alive, and trapped; he must now find and fight his way out of the empire back to Lucis. All while trying to come to terms with those back home thinking him dead and fighting to keep his L'Cie Brand closed just long enough to see Nyx one last time.





	1. Chapter 1

“When you said you’d be showing me something that involved a huge secret, I didn’t think you meant a tattoo, Lu.” Luche raised a brow at the tone Nyx was currently using as he stared down at the strange looking mark on his left wrist. Nyx was cradling the other’s hand between his own, running his thumb over the black ink on his skin. Or, at least Nyx thought it was Ink, it didn’t look anything like a tattoo would. Hell, he wasn’t even aware Luche had gotten any tattoos during their years of knowing each other. Sure, they didn’t spend every waking moment together, but it would hard for Nyx not to notice if Luche was making trips to the parlor to get this done. “But, yeah it’s-“

“Not a tattoo.” Luche cut in. his tone oddly serious all things considered. Nyx looked up at his blue-eyed boyfriend and was met with the sight of a look on his face he wasn’t used to seeing. Luche was many things, but; nervous, and scared was not one of them. the man liked to be cautious yes, he wa a strategist for the Kingsglaive, so he was all about plans and thinking of the best, most effective, and safest way to get things done. Was him showing him this mark really that huge of a deal that he looked so nervous? “Sometimes though, I wish it was.” He stated, pulling his hand back, easily spilling back on a black leather bracelet over the mark so it was hidden perfectly. This really wasn’t like Luche, so his look of shock turned to one of worry as he scooted closer to the other male. He glanced around the room, though Nyx logically knew that currently in the small apartment it was just him and Luche. The two had a rare day off together while the others were off on a deployment. “It’s a L’Cie brand.”

“L’Cie, wait I thought Ignis…. But his-“

“Is completely closed while mine is just starting to open, which isn’t a good sign.” Luche cut in, he sighed, running a hand through his hair. “You aren’t supposed to know this. Only the king, and his council are supposed to know. They say its for a security reason. They can’t nor do they want to risk the Empire finding out for fear of them seeing this a trump card for the Lucis Kingdom. Though, that’s basically what this is. Two L’Cie is better than one… if I could summon my Eidolon.” Nyx could tell that the other male was clearly upset and not in agreement with what the higher ups had in place. Nyx wasn’t sure he liked what he was hearing either, he had seen and heard of what ignis was going through when he became the first L’Cie to the Lucian kingdom. The extra training, the extra classes, more responsibility was put on his shoulders. But he didn’t see Luche having all that extra training.

“But, you don’t get the training Ignis is getting? And what in the world is a Eidolon?” Nyx asked, Luche let out a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. Frowning, Nyx reached over, taking the other male’s hands between his own, running his thumb over his knuckles. “Hey, hey… Lu, relax. Take things one step at a time. Okay? im going to be here all day and night. We can take all the time we want to go over what this means and is. Just please,” he said, reaching up with one of his hands and cupping his face gently. Nyx watched as Luche leaned into his hand, the stress and tension in his body slowly started to bleed out. Which is exactly what Nyx wanted, a stressed out Luche, was never a good Luche, a saying like the _‘Happy wife, happy life.’_. “Now, lets start with something simple, the training. I’ve seen the training they are giving Ignis. Are you receiving that same amount of training?”

“No, it would be too obvious,” he started saying, scooting closer to the older male. “So, instead they keep me in the dark. They don’t tell me anything, allow me access to any information they do or do not have on L’Cie. The more in the dark I am, the better for them.” he sighed, finally moving so he was tucked up against Nyx’s chest, though he made sure to keep Nyx’s hand on his cheek. “I only know what I know because I sometimes get lucky enough to talk with a past L’Cie who happened to have the same Eidolon as I am supposed to have.”

“Okay, so that leads into my second question,” the older man said, kissing the top of Luche’s head for a moment, with his other hand he rubbed his back gently. “What’s an Eidolon? What is the point of one?” Nyx couldn’t fight the smile on his face when he felt Luche wrap his arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. however, the younger didn’t respond right away. He stayed silent for a few moments, Nyx didn’t mind. It gave them both time to process the information and to process the fact that Luche had just disclosed information that no one else was supposed to know. He could only imagine the panic Luche was feeling in this moment, the younger was always good at hiding what he was feeling, what he was thinking. “Lu,” he got a hum in response, “Lu you know I love you right? That whatever this is, it’s not going to change anything, right?” Luche could only huff as he pulled away enough from the other man to look at him in the eyes. Nyx didn’t flinch when he felt his boyfriends place a hand on his cheek. “Don’t look at me like that. makes me think that your finally gonna take people’s advice and find yourself a better man.” at that, Luche snorted, chuckling at the statement, which was exactly what Nyx had been hoping to get out of him.

“Why are you like this? Why do I even love you?” he heard Luche ask playfully, Nyx could only grin and shrug before he reached out and took hold of his left wrist again. Luche paused, watching the other glaive carefully as the black, leather band was pulled off and away from the brand that seemed to haunt him everyday of his life. Though, he couldn’t ignore nor deny the sudden lump in his throat or the wetness in his eyes when he watched Nyx gently run his thumbs over the brand. He couldn’t stop the tears that managed to escape when he kissed said brand. As cheesy as it looked, and as cheesy as it was; this meant a lot to him. Especially when he wasn’t allowed to tell anyone of this, this was the one thing he kept hidden from Nyx for a long time. Luche gave a small chuckle, using his free hand to wipe the tears from his face. “Six, you are such an idiot.”

“But im your idiot. So that’s gotta count for something, right? Besides, you love it. otherwise, we wouldn’t be here.” he stated smugly, which earned him a light punch to the shoulder. “But, really, in all seriousness. Its going to be okay, Luche. Im sorry I didn’t notice sooner-“

“You weren’t supposed to find out or know. If anything, I’m sorry for keeping it form you for so long.” Luche cut in quickly, placing his hand on the back of Nyx’s neck pulling him in close and pressing their lips together. “Nyx, im telling you think now because I’ll be going away for a deployment in a few days,” he explained, sounding almost sad about it. usually if they did get deployed, they knew the other would be going away for a while, so they never really got sad about it. Luche though now, did not sound happy about leaving. “im not supposed to tell you where, but im going to anyway because I need you to know just in case anything happens, -“

“In case anything happens? Where are they sending you?”

“Niflheim.” Nyx froze the moment the word left Luche’s mouth. He felt his blood run cold and he was sure that he felt something in him shatter. Since when did they send glaive out into enemy territory, and to the heart of it? what the hell was the king thinking. “Nyx? Nyx look at me, hey,” the man blinked a few times and looked at the younger with worry. he hadn’t even realized that he had zoned out until his face was being held between Luche’s hands.  “I…” shaking his head, Luche trialed off, his eyes closing as he pressed their foreheads together. “I got those orders the other night. I wont be leaving until a few days from today. Im sorry, but I had to tell you.”

“Let me guess, L’Cie business?” he asked, though his voice took on a slightly annoyed and angry tone. Though the hunter mentally kicked himself when he felt the flinch come from the younger male In front of him. “No, no, hey im sorry,” reaching out, he pulled the other man flush against his chest.  Taking in a deep breath the man nuzzled his nose against the other’s. “Im not mad at you. never with you. just…of all the places, Niflheim? Its not safe, far from it.” this was Nyx ranting now by this point, and Luche would let him. “Whatever they send you in for, please come back. Okay?”

Luche merely smiled, pressing their lips together. He didn’t say yes or no, he didn’t even acknowledge the question. And he probably wouldn’t either. both knew very well that their jobs as Kingsglaive required them to take on dangerous missions and to be ready to give their lives for the sake of the Lucian kingdom.  They knew exactly what they where signing up for when they came to the crown city, they couldn’t complain now, not this far in. “Come on, you own me a back rub,” Luche said, earning a small chuckle from Nyx allowing himself to be pulled to his feet and lead to their shared room. “By the way, as for your question on what an Eidolon is, its supposed to be a minor astral in a sense. They only appear to help their respective L’Cie in a moment of distress. Now help be to kill you or help you as in snap you out of it, that’s all up to you and if you let it kill you.”

“Six, what kind of bullshit-“

“Ah, back rub now, rant later.” Luche cut in, letting out a huff, Nyx gave him a fond smile as he was pulled to their room. Might as well enjoy the days he had with him before he would leave for Niflheim.

In the days that followed, Nyx was sure they hadn’t felt the apartment for in favor to stick with Luche. The one or two times he did leave was via the younger male’s request to go pick up a few things from the market. Otherwise, Nyx stayed in, held, kissed and just generally stayed within arm’s reach of Luche. Others would have found it annoying, however he could see that Luche appreciated said constant contact and affection. This went on for days, up until the day of departure for the younger of the two. Luche heaved out a sigh as he sat on the sofa, spilling on his boots flicking on the straps and such. His coat laid next to him along with a backpack. The mission was scheduled to last about two months. No more, no less. It consisted of all information gathering and planting in men that would serve as their eyes and ears within the empire. Running his hands down his face, the young of the two failed to notice when Nyx had stepped out from their room into the living room. So, when he felt a hand land on his shoulder he did startle but was quick to relax and lean against the shirtless body next to him. it was still dark outside, the sun hadn’t reached them just yet, probably not for another two or three hours at least. They stayed like this, both silent and enjoying the last few minutes they had together before Luche had to leave. “Be safe, okay? don’t do anything reckless,” Luche scoffed, pulling away and looking up at him, leaning up and kissing the other gently. “Luche,”

“I know. I’ll try to be safe. We shouldn’t be doing anything stupid. But you know as well as I do that things don’t always go as planned. But I’ll try. I promise I’ll try.” He replied, he sighed, kissing him again before he got to his feet, Nyx standing up with him as well. “I need to get going. I’ll be back before you even know it. just…just wait for me.” He said carefully, grabbing his coat and slipping it on as he used his other hand to snatch up his bag as he walked to the door. He turned to look at Nyx, frowning at the worried look on the blue-eyed male’s face.

“I love you till the sun falls out of the sky.” Nyx mumbled, wrapping his arm around the brown-haired man’s waist, pulling him in close against his chest. Smiling, Luche kissed him again.

“And I love you, you’ll be my sun should it fall.” He mumbled, pulling away from the older and nodding in a silent good bye as he stepped out of the apartment and over to where he would meet up with the others going on this deployment with him.


	2. Chapter 2

****

They departed from the Crown City as soon as the rest of the team arrived. It wasn’t a huge team. A group of five with Luche included. All of them Kingsglaive and each of them had a job to do while they stayed in the Empire. But even that was classified just in case. Luche understood, Titus had explained to him that his job on this mission was merely to collect all information he could get his hands on about the empire, the condition of its people and their Military along with weapon plans. All things he usually collected with ease. Though, it had never been right from the Empire’s capitol, from bases and outposts was one thing. This was something completely different. They had been on the road for a few days now. he looked down at his phone, sighing in slight frustration that it was now nearing sunset. They made quick work on getting to Altissia and from there getting to Cartanica train station. Currently, Luche was looking down at his phone, his thumb seeming to hover over the call button on the said phones screen. With a shake of his head, he smiled, pressing the button and pressing the phone to his ear.

“ _I was wondering when you were gonna call me,_ ” the sound of the other male’s voce naturally brought a smile to Luche’s face. “ _God do you realize how long you’ve kept me waiting? Huh mister? Shame on you. shame on you, Luche Lazarus.”_ Now that earned Nyx a laugh.

“Honestly, I should hang up on you,” Luche stated as he leaned back in his seat, staring out the window of the train as he kept going down the tracks, for now, it was all desert sands with the setting sun in the background giving the sky its orange hue color to the entire area. The sight was beautiful, breathtaking even. Sure, it wasn’t Galahdian sunsets, but it was still nice. “How are things in the City? Everyone holding up okay?” he heard Nyx chuckle along with a few voices in the background, he could make out Crowe’s easily. Along with the sound of something or several somethings falling over. “Nyx Ulric my apartment better be in one piece when I get back.” He could hear the other man laugh, making the side blue-eyed male roll his eyes.

“ _Boy scout’s honor the apartment-“_ Nyx was cut off by the sound of loud laughter and several shouts of his name along with several forms of greetings. He rolled his eyes, but the fond look, the warm feeling in his chest betrayed the eye roll. Days away from the others was a vacation, but he did also miss their constant playful banters and the days they would all just spend a night on the town drinking, eating and poking fun at each other. “ _Six, okay well, it will be okay by the time you get back.”_ Luche scoffed, not believing him, but knowing the others would help him clean if need be. “ _To answer your question, everything has been good on this end, just waiting for you guys to get to where you need to get to. How’s everything on your end?”_

He had opened his mouth to answer but the screeching of the trains wheels against the rails immediately cut him off. He winced at the loud noise and stood up, looking out the window. He eyed the slowing scenery, he looked over at where the other Kingsglaive had decided to sit, and all of them seemed to be on guard. “Well, it had been fine,”

“ _Had been?_ ”

“Yes, had been-“the said man was quick to duck down behind the seats when bullets started to break through the glass windows. He scooted over to the edge of the seat, peaking out and watching as the rest of the team seemed to be doing the same. He could hear screams from some of the civilians on board I the other cars. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said, standing up after the hellfire of bullets stopped coming in through the windows. When he peaked outside he couldn’t stop the wide-eyed expression that found its way on his face. the sight of the Empire’s army of Magitek soldiers standing on each side of the train was the last thing he had been expecting. “Son of a- get down!” he shouted to the others, the last thing he heard was a deafening explosion before everything around him went dark.

000

“Hello? Lu?” Nyx asked, the phone pressed to his ear, behind him, Crowe’s eyes narrowed as she stood up slowly, walking to stand next to the older glaive. “Luche? Luche, hey what’s-“he had to pull his phone away from his ear as sudden loud pops made him wince. But what shook him to his core was the shout of Luche ordering people to get down before the loud explosion cut everything off. He stood there, staring blankly at the phone in his hand.

“Nyx? Nyx, what happened?” Crowe asked, coming up next to him and placing a hand on his shoulder. Though from the look on his face, it was clear that whatever had just happened was not a good thing. His lack of a reaction to her calling his name worried her. with a glare, she lifted her hand and slapped his cheek. This seemed to snap Nyx out of his trance before he looked to her and the others in the apartment with panic. “Nyx, what happened? What did he say?”

“I don’t- the call cut off. The train- shit! Pelna, where is the captain?” he asked, turning to the dark-skinned male who gave him a look of confusion and concern.

“He’s at the Citadel in a meeting with the king, why? What’s going on? You look like the world just ended, or that Luche dumped you.” he explained.

The group watch as the man ran a hand through his hair before rushing off to grab his coat then pull his boots on. There had only been one other time when the phone call cut off like that when he and Luche were speaking to each other and that had been when the said man was out on deployment like now. it had been due to a sudden raid by the empire had the phone cut like that, yes Luche came out of it alive and well, nothing more then a few bullet grazes here and there but nothing serious. however, this time around, was a different feeling. Something in his gut along with the sound of gunfire in the background chilled Nyx down to the bone. if something had happened, then he would need to get to the captain and inform him of what he had just heard. Nyx didn’t waste time after he managed to slip his boots on before he ran out the door and down the street, yes, he was very aware he was probably freaking the others out, and he was sure they would follow him to find out what he was so put off by. Though, none of that mattered in the moment, in his mind, he needed to get to Titus, he needed to inform him and try to find out what had just happened and where Luche was.

He had lost Selena already, he couldn’t bear to lose Luche as well, not after everything they’ve been though and not because of some idiot mission that the Crown truly believed it would be worth risking the lives of a handful of Kingsglaive for.  Nyx wasn’t even entirely sure how long it took him to finally reach the citadel much less how many people and guards he pushed past to reach the throne room. But he did notice the look of confusion and slight anger on the faces of the council and the captain himself. “What in the name of the Six are you lot doing barging in like that?” Nyx turned his head slightly, not one bit shocked that the rest of the glaive had followed him. though he also didn’t miss just how angry the captain was and he didn’t miss the glare on his face either. “Well!?”

“Sir, something’s happened to Luche and his team-“Nyx finally spoke, up, this caught the attention of everyone in the room. “he called me to check in on how things were going here in the city. It had been fine but-“he stopped talking when the man held his hand up and looked up to the king. said king seemed to understand what the Captain was asking without the words needing to be said. He watched, desperately and nervously as the older man turned his attention back to the glaive in the room. His eyes drifted to each of them, seeming to debate on choice. “Tredd and Axis get your things and meet me in the briefing room. The rest of you go home. I’ll keep you updated as needed-“

“As needed!? What kind of bullshit-“ Nyx started, stopping when Crowe placed a hand on his chest and stepped in front of him. a silent warning that she and Luche had come up with whenever Nyx seemed to start losing his temper. “Crowe,”

“Don’t, relax. I get it, you’re worried but so are the rest of us.” She scolded, but the look on her face betrayed her tone, she was clearly scared of what could have happened to their childhood friend. The two had become like brother and sister after ignis had been brought to the City. She gladly stepped in to be the sibling he didn’t know that he needed in his life. Nyx stared down at her, then looked up where the captain, Tredd and Axis were walking out of the room. “Nyx, it’s going to be okay,”

“God I hope so…” he mumbled, she sighed moving her hand to his shoulder and squeezing it before she turned her attention note the king, sweeping her fist over her chest and bowing.

“We apologize for the disruption, your majesty.” She stated, the others following her lead as they mimicked the action. She waited until the king nodded, before she straightened out and swiftly turned around, making her way out of the large room with the others following briskly behind her.

“Nyx Ulric,” the king called, this made the man stop in his tracks immediately, turning on his heel to look at the ruler of their kingdom. “Stay a few moments, will you? there is something I need to discuss with you.” though it was phrased as a question, Nyx didn’t miss the undertone order of it, the blue-eyed male nodded. He gave Crowe a reassuring smile before she walked out of the room, the doors closing behind her. Nyx took a deep breath and turned his attention back to the King was now standing up, making his way down the stairs, his shield following ever loyally. “If you called you, then im assuming you must know his secret.” There was no malice or anger in the older man’s tone, so Nyx took that as a good sign. “Yes, keeping it a secret has not been easy, not on him especially.”

“Then why keep it that way, Majesty?” he asked, his tone full of confusion, the king looked up as the set of doors opened again and walking in was Ignis himself with the son of Tenebrae at his side. “Lord Scientia, Highness,” Nyx greeted, Ignis though seemed to ignore him as he rushed up to the king. Regis was quick to put his hands on the younger male’s shoulders, whispering to him. he seemed to be talking the future advisor from what looked like a panic attack. “Is everything alright?” Nyx asked, looking to Ravus who turned his attention to him before shaking his head.

“I fear not. I have just received word that the Train from Cartanica was ambushed on the tracks and attacked by the Empire’s soldiers.” At that, Nyx’s heart sank when he turned to look at the king, he could see Ignis didn’t look like he was doing much better at all despite the king’s efforts to reassure him. “As of now, we do not know the extent of the damage. The soldiers haven’t left the area and with everything set ablaze we cannot get our men in close enough to see who made it off alive, dead, unharmed or harmed. Ignis was with me when I got the news, im not sure what has him rattled, but it does. As soon as he was asked to come here to speak with the king, he came as fast as he could.”

“And you?” Ravus sighed.

“I never leave his side when he is in such a state.”

“Thank you for coming, Ravus. Now, as you all may know, Ignis is not the only L’Cie here,” the king started explaining, Ignis stayed close to the older mans side, eyeing him with such a look of worry and hurt. Nyx was sure he was in no different situation, he sighed, reaching over and placing his hand on the younger man’s shoulder, squeezing it. Ignis glanced at him and gave him, though forced, a small smile. “Luche is our second L’Cie, has been for a while now. a few days ago, he was given a mission to get into the Empire’s capitol, blend in and collect all information possible in the hopes of us having the ability to reclaim the lands that were taken from us.”

“Yeah, he told me…said he would be gone for about three months or so,” Nyx added, Regis nodded, though he looked somber now, almost as if he regretted his decision in sending in the team of Kingsglaive. “Please don’t tell me he was on that train,” the king remained silent, Nyx’s hands curled into fists, his knuckles going white. “Majesty, please, please tell me Luche wasn’t on that train, tell me you didn’t send my _boyfriend_ on a mission just to die on a fucking train!” he shouted now.

“I apologize, Nyx Ulric. But for now, we do not know how many people perished in that attack. We have no choice but to wait.” He stated, for a long while, the room was silent. Nyx kept his head hung low, his fits clenched tightly, Ravus stood there, face not expressing any emotion, and ignis, well, he didn’t seem to take the silence well before he turned and started to storm out of the room.

“Ignis,” Ravus called, following the other quickly, Nyx looked up and sighed. He stayed, knowing right now, Ignis didn’t need him to try and reassure him.

“He had been the one to volunteer to go on this assignment,” Regis said slowly, Nyx blinked and looked up at him. “He had asked me to send him, saying that he would have a good chance at gathering what information we need. Perhaps I was a fool for allowing it, but he wouldn’t take no for an answer. I pray that he is unharmed and comes homes safely. For your sake, and ignis’ as well.” A hand patted his shoulder firmly before the King walked past him, his shield following leaving Nyx alone in the now overly large room.

Losing Selena had been devastating. He still had trouble getting over that, it was no secret to anyone who was close to him. but to potentially lose Luche? How long had he known the man? few years now? he had met Luche when both were just kids. The two had met purely on chance when Nyx ran into the brown-haired boy as a baby brother in arms with their mother when she happened to stop by and ask Nyx’s own parents about a few things. he supposed that’s where his fascination with the boy started, he was…well put together and rather smart, and respectful for a kid so young. It didn’t take much after that to find out where he lived and start socializing with him, it wasn’t easy at first. Luche was hard to even get a few words out of him, but one day did stand out to Nyx, and it had been a day he had managed to get a full-bodied laugh out of the younger male. It slipped his mind what he had done or said, but the sound of the other boy laughing, arms wrapped around his middle as he was hunched over, and close to tears with just how hard he was laughing, it was a sight that Nyx was sure it was then he realized that he liked the boy, more then a friend probably would. Since then, Nyx had made it his mission to get the boy to giggle or laugh at least once or a few times in a day. This lasted for years, and though out the years, he had only fallen more in love with the brown-haired male. Until finally, they were eighteen and both had decided to ditch classes that day and found themselves skipping rocks along the lake they deemed their hang out spot. They started with small talk, they often found it comfortable to sit in silence, since both knew Luche would end up humming some random little song he knew.

That day however had been different, he didn’t start the usual humming, he looked almost nervous. By the time Nyx had finally decided to ask him what was bothering him, he was pulled into a rough but quick kiss before he watched Luche step away from him. The poor guy had a look of fear, worry and apprehensiveness on his face that just broke Nyx’s heart, and he was sure that Luche would have ran for the hills after that if he had not grabbed him by the writs, pulled him back against his chest and kissed him again. that’s when they started dating and hadn’t stopped since. Yes, they had their ups and downs, but it was never anything that would ruin their relationship enough to were they would split up. since then, they stuck by each other’s side, supporting one another when it was needed most.  Luche was never far from him, and he was never far from Luche. And now…

Now he was here, in a large city, in a large citadel without any idea as to how Luche was doing, or if he was still even alive. All he could hope was that the man was smart enough to take cover somewhere he would take minimum to no damage. But even so, life wasn’t fair like that. not all the time.

000

First thing he noticed when he woke up was the ringing in his ears, the sound of muffled voices, and that he was sure he was being dragged away. He didn’t last long awake though before he once again passed out. When he woke a second time, he noticed hot, searing pain up his right ribcage and right leg. When he tried to move his arms, he was confused when he couldn’t bring them down from their up position. With much difficulty, Luche glanced up and frowned in further confusion at the sight of his right hand seeming to be fastened to a metal object. He turned to look to his left and found his other hand in the same position though, it wasn’t held against a metal back, it was held up by something else that had a long scalpel like object uncomfortably close to his now exposed L’Cie brand. His eyes widened, as the situation started to sink in slowly. Where was he? Who had him? where was the rest of the team? Had they survived? How much damage had he taken? All these questions kept running though his head so much so that he had failed to realize that he was no longer alone in this cell or room he was in.

It was only by the slamming of the door that startled him out of his thoughts. Luche was quick to look up, his eyes narrowing at the sight of two soldiers and what appeared to be a scientist of sorts. All he could think of now was that this was not going to go well for him, and considering how they had him chained up, it was clear that they knew exactly who he was and what he can do if he was free. He eyed the three people carefully, following their movements as they seemed to look at something on the computer screen in front of them. it felt like hours before the man in the white lab coat finally turned his attention to him, Luche’s glare only intensified when the man gave him an unimpressed look. He growled slightly when the said man moved to look at his left wrist, and yes, he got a sick joy out of when the man jumped back when Luche tried to lung at him, to only succeeding in making what was holding him back rattle with the force he used.

Though, the feeling of satisfaction was short lived when the nameless man flicked a switch on the monitor, the said object he was strapped to suddenly pulled him back, so he was right up against it. he groaned at the force, it was clear he had some serious injuries that needed to be tended to whenever and if he got out of here.  he barely had anytime to think over what they were going to do before a pulsing but burning pain rushed through his body. he immediately let out cries and shouts of pain, it felt like it lasted forever before the pain was gone as quickly as it came. It left him panting, head hung low.

“There, that should do it. now, I need to see what I can find on that interesting little mark on his wrist. Try to see what information you two can get out of him.” Luche’s growled, though that was cut short when he felt something jabbed into his side, once again feeling the same, burning and pulsing pain as before. “And do try not to kill him before we get information out of him, otherwise its going to be you two next on the testing.” Luche was sure these guys were getting off on just shocking him with mere seconds of rest between each session. Maybe a few minutes passed of them just doing this before he finally just shagged against his restraints. Panting trying to catch his breath and his muscles aching from the electrical shocks.

Luche did manage a growl however when one man grabbed his face in a rough grip, forcing him to look up.  “Well, we know Lucis sent you, but for what? what are you here for?” said Glaive only raised a brow at them, keeping silent. “Why. Did. They. Send. You?” the man asked, his grip tightening on his face. At this Luche glared, though he would admit he was proud with how quickly and easy it was for these soldiers to lose their cool, if the punch to his face was anything to go by. With his head now jerked to the side from the force, he could feel blood trickle down from a cut on his cheekbone.

“Can you at least show some self-control? This bastard is getting of on how easily hes pissing you off.” Luche scoffed and gave a small nod in confirmation. That earned him a punch to his gut, making him gasp for the air that was just knocked out of him. “Case in point. Im going to go wait out the door. You keep trying to see if you can make him talk.” Luche rolled his eyes but soon locked gazes with the soldier in front of him. he wasn’t unaware of their methods of trying to get people to talk, it was heard about all the time over the news back I the crown city.

However, he had never experienced it himself, and thank the six, neither had any of his eight companions. “You are a stubborn bastard, aren’t you?” it was a rhetorical question Luche knew, if the pressing of an electrical rod to his side was anything go by that is. “Why is I have a feeling this is going to be a long night? Are all you Kingsglaive like this?” when the shocked stopped, he was once again left hanging limply from the metal restraints. Though taking deep breaths only sent stabbing pains up his side, so he stuck with small, quick ones. “Why did your king send you? what are you here for?” his lack of a response to the question asked made the man sigh.

“Alright, suit yourself, kid. This would have been avoided.” 


	3. Chapter 3

“These were all we could find,” Nyx lifted his head, his gazed landed on the captain who was holding a box out to him and Ignis who was sitting on his right, dead silent, head hung low. The man didn’t even flinch when a drop of water landed on his face. He hesitated before slowly reaching up and taking the box into his hands. “It’s not much, but it is better then nothing.” even Titus sounded somber, upset. Despite being part of the Kingsglaive much longer then Nyx, and no matter how much more experience he had, the older man felt the loss of one of his best men deeply. Hell, it wasn’t even because he was a subordinate, Luche was their friend. He was the one in their group who always made sure they were well fed, well rested or even just in good spirits. Nyx rested the box on his lap, he took a glance to Ignis who didn’t seem to even want to look at the box, or anyone but the floor in front of him.

“Was it worth it, Captain…?” Ignis asked, tone low and so full of sadness and hurt. It made Nyx flinch a bit, Ignis usually was good with hiding his emotions, but when it came to family and friends, that wasn’t the case. Because here he was, so broken, so sad, feeling so alone despite the friends he had and despite the lover who was ever loyally at his side.  “Was the mission worth it?” all three stayed silent for what seemed like several minutes before the Captain took in a deep breath and exhaled before speaking.

“I’ll make sure no one interferes with the investigation.” That was the last thing he said before the man turned and walked away. Nyx looked down at the box on his lap, it was closed, and he was sure that maybe Ignis would be the one who had more right to it then he did, after all, Ignis is- was Luche’s younger brother. Nyx leaned closer to the younger male when he heard a small sniffle escape the green-eyed male, when their shoulders brushed, Ignis was quick to lean against him completely. Both closed their eyes, ignoring how the dark clouds that loomed over the Crown city finally let go of the rain they held. A clear, but stereotypical indication of just how upsetting this day was, at least Nyx thought so. Minutes passed, the rain only got worse. Nyx could feel Ignis shaking next to him, reaching out he laced their fingers together, giving the younger male’s hand a reassuring squeeze. There was nothing he could say that would make either of them better, Nyx knew that, perhaps he would be the only one who knew that. perhaps he was the only one who would understand the pain Ignis was feeling right now.

“Nyx? Ignis?” Nyx wanted to ignore the calling of their names, but with the tone he knew ignoring Crowe wouldn’t help anyone, so he opened his eyes and turned his head in the direction of her voice. “Do you two want to come inside? Or want some company?” she asked, to tell the truth, no he didn’t want to go inside, and no, he didn’t want company, but he couldn’t speak for the future Advisor.

“Well, do you want either of those things?” he asked softly, pressing his lips to the other’s temple, he felt the younger man shake his head instantly. “No, but thanks for the offer Crowe.” He replied, turning to look back down at the sealed box on his lap, wrapping his arm around the still silently crying male. Nyx startled when he noticed the droplets of rain stopped hitting his body, he looked up and wasn’t in the least bit shocked to see Ravus standing over the two, holding an umbrella over their forms. He gave the man a weak but forced smile. he didn’t get one from the other man.

“It’s alright to feel hurt. To mourn over the loss of a loved one,” he started, looking at Ignis who had yet to look up once since he and Nyx arrived to the Kingsglaive HQ. “But, I wouldn’t advise making yourself Ill.” The man took a knee in front of Ignis, reaching out and placing his hand on his back, gently rubbing there. Nyx opened his mouth to respond, but the weight and someone wrapping his arms around his shoulders stopped him from speaking. He blinked a few times before it hit him who it was exactly. He smiled a sad smile, his eyes stinging as he placed a hand over the arms pulling him into a hug. At that moment, he finally let the tears fall, unlike Ignis though, his crying wasn’t silent and the hands that fell on his shoulders, head, neck, cheek and knees didn’t help the issue.

This was one of the many times that Nyx was grateful for having the Kingsglaive as part of his family, because with the loss of his sister and now the love of his life, he truly did feel like he had no one left.

000

Keeping track of time while being beaten just about every other day was impossible. At least it had become impossible after four days. Luche had given up after four days of trying to keep count just how long he had been trapped here. throughout his time here however, they had never once stopped questioning him about why he was sent. Though he wasn’t proud to admit that their methods got brutal and made him nervous whenever they came to get him. their most recent method? To start cutting away layer by layer of skin where his L’Cie brand was located. His screams of pain where not something he was proud of, but he was proud over the fact that he never allowed any information slip from his mouth. Now, Luche found himself leaning against the dark colored wall of the cell he was held in, his eyes where closed, giving off the appearance that he was dead asleep. His breathing was shallow and little quicker than normal.

“Still showing symptoms I presume?”

“Yes, infections of the wounds he has seemed to have made him ill.” At the sound of voices, Luche opened his eyes, letting them drift over to the two men standing in front of the cell. He gave them a blank expression, his eyes narrowed slightly when one allowed his eyes to drift to his left wrist which he kept cradled to his chest. “He’s what is called a L’Cie, humans branded and picked the Fal’Cie who once ruled over this world many, many centuries ago,” one man started explaining as he punched in a code on the small keypad by the cell doors, his glare only intensified when the said door slid open, allowing two soldiers to walk in. normally he would have fought back, but last time he had they managed to dislocate his right knee. And that was a whole different type of pain, so this time around he allowed himself to be hauled up to his feet before being lead down the dimly lit hallways of the facility. “If it wasn’t the Fal’Cie, it was the Crystals of the time. There was once a total of four, each one looked after by a different kingdom. Each one giving its L’Cie different magic abilities. Though, over time, all but one Crystal survived the passage of time, and eventually, with the dying of the three Crystals, the need for L’Cie became obsolete. Thus, new ones were never picked again. that is,” the man paused, once again entering a code into a keypad next to a set of heavy metal doors.

Luche frowned as he watched the all too familiar doors slid open with a loud hiss. Inside the room was the same as it always was, the same device he was first strapped to sat in the middle of the room, clean as usual. Even if he wanted to fight back against the soldiers as they got him once again restrained, but with the injuries he had and with how weak he felt right now, there was no chance that he could get away. He winced when his arms were pinned up above his head, a sharp pain shot up his left ribcage, he had almost forgotten that they fractured and or broke two or three ribs. “Until you and one other man made your existence own to the Crystal your beloved king protects. That’s when it decided, for whatever odd reason, it needed two. No more, no less.” Luche felt his blood run cold, that’s right, he had forgotten that Ignis’ being a L’Cie was not a secret. He stayed ever silent, only grunting in pain when his left wrist was fastened tightly into place. “Which then brings up the very important question; Why two? And of all the people in the world, it picked two plebeians.”

For once, Luche scoffed, shaking his head for a moment before he glanced down at his feet. He blinked in surprise as the two soldiers walked out of the room with a wave from the scientists’ hand. Typically, his ankles were also fastened to the metal stand he was currently on, however, either they got cocky that he was to hurt to try anything, or, they were new to the job. Either way, the blue eyed male merely gave a small grin, it disappeared as quickly as it came. For now, he thought it best to wait, he didn’t know how long he had been in here for, but he knew it was long enough to memorize the guard schedules. And he may or may not have remembered the override code said lab coat wearing man had.  Though, he could know all of that and have mobility of his legs all he wanted, but what good would It do him when he couldn’t even get his hands free? Thoughts cut off when he felt the cutting of his skin just over the unworn L’Cie Brand, though, there was something he noticed under the pain he was feeling, both of his wrists were not pinned as tightly as they should have been. Another win for him, now he just had to wait.

And six only knew how long he would have to. For once since being trapped here, he didn’t feel ashamed of his screams of pain that echoed down the hallways.

000

“How long do you plan to keep on letting him sulk?”

“Depends on how long you plan on continuing to watch your guy get the life beaten out of him.” Fang scoffed, arms crossed over her chest. Though she supposed the goddess queen of old had a point in that, she was more then capable of getting her charge out of the situation he was currently in, being she was the only one willing to go against orders of the crystal to do so. “And depends how much you want to say, ‘ _screw you_ ’ to the crystal and the gods, or should I say Bahamut?” she could tell by the narrowing of the other woman’s eyes and the tightening of her hand around her red colored lance that she struck nerve with mentioning her once Eidolon. “Fang,” the pink haired woman started as she walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. “What are you planning?”

If there was one thing Lightning knew about Fang; it was that she was extremely protective of her charge. Compared to her, Fang was much more involved with him than she was involved with Ignis. Though that was more due to personal choice, she didn’t want to make it seem like she was there to hold his hand, though she also knew that she was making it seem like she was leaving him on his own to figure things out. Which in a sense she was, but Fang? Oh no, not Fang, sure the woman never once gave Luche the immediate answer to situations, but she was much more willing to give out hints and help him out as much as she could and as much as he would allow while also being okay with. Despite both of their charges being connected, the two seemed to be taking two very different paths to the same goal.

“I’ll pull some strings.” She stated simply, judging by her tone, the woman was not only going to pull some strings, she was going to be there herself. Goddess Queen Lightning maybe, but she knew better then to try and get in Fang’s way, after all, Fang never once tried to tell her how to handle her charge thus she never tried to tell Fang how to handle hers. The two women had an understanding form the years and years of knowing one another and eventually even falling in love. Once brought together for a common cause, now once again brought together for another common cause and it was to save their once world from being destroyed and to keep the Oracle and Lucis Caelum lines from coming to an end. “I’ll see you later, alright?” Lightning could only nod as she watched the woman take her leave.

“Be safe.”

000

“Think they’re gonna be okay?” it was a question everyone at this point who knew Nyx and Ignis had been asking themselves since they received the news of Luche’s passing. Though Prompto was the only one willing to verbally ask. Noctis sighed, he had never once in all his years of knowing Ignis, seen him this upset. It had been about three days since a box of whatever belongings Luche had on him was given to the two. It remained untouched at the Glaive’s HQ, the two clearly having a hard time coping with the loss of their lover and older brother respectively. Ignis was already reserved and kept to himself, but these days, it was rare to see Ignis leave his home. As for Nyx he rarely went out with anyone these days; preferring to stay home and keep to himself. From time to time he and Ignis would meet up, however they never really spoke, they only sat at the highest point of the Glaive’s HQ to watch the sun set over their city.  “Noct?” the said dark haired prince could only shrug as he leaned against the gunner. “Maybe we should try talking to them.”

“I’m sure people have tried but its clear that it hasn’t helped any.” Prompto huffed, getting up forcing the prince to sit up right. He watched as he walked over to the pair and sat between them. Noctis was a little shocked to see Ignis lean on their Chocobo loving friend so quickly. but it was a comfort as well, it was a sign that Ignis hadn’t pulled away from them completely. Seeing that, Noctis was quick to get up and sit on Ignis’s free side, wrapping an arm around his waist. “You know, dad tells me you often can feel when something’s happened to a loved one. So, maybe Lu is okay.” that seemed to get a reaction out of their green-eyed friend, he sat up and looked at the prince for a moment as if he had just given a clue to some great riddle of the world. “Ignis?” said man was quick to get to his feet, grabbing the back of Nyx’s shirt and pulling him to his feet despite Prompto being between them. “Hey. Ignis what’s-“

“The Crystal, come with me and I’ll explain everything.” The words spoken so quickly, Nyx was sure that maybe he had misheard the man speaking. Though this didn’t stop him or the group from the following the emerald eyed man down to the elevator to the bottom of this tower. “As you all know, Luche, much like myself is a L’Cie. Chosen by the Crystal to do its bidding for the grand scheme of things, however, despite both of us being chosen,”

“Only Ignis got training to balance out his new role to the Lucian Royal family, Luche was kept a secret, basically left on his own to figure out what it is he was supposed to be doing while taking on a lot of solo missions.” Nyx explained, taking longer strides to keep up with the slightly shorter, but younger man as he leads them out of the elevator and down the hallways. Though, Nyx could tell from the confused on Noctis’ face along with Prompto’s that they couldn’t grasp why Luche’s being a L’Cie was kept a secret verses Ignis who was basically outed to the world. “Luche was used for Recon missions. Assassinations and things of the like, verses Ignis who was outed to the world as a….” he trialed off, thinking over a better use of words as he didn’t exactly want to offend the man. “He was used and seen as a last resort situation.” He finally settled on. The group paused as they approached the Crystal room, they watched as Ignis spoke with the guards, they seemed hesitant on letting him in, though seemed to finally go along with his words as one turned to punch in a code then use a keycard to unlock and open the set of metal doors. “Ignis, what are you planning?”

“L’Cie often times can sense when another L’Cie is around, though that’s only if they are in close proximity,” Ignis stated, nodding to some of the men within the room as they stepped aside, allowing him to punch in a few codes into the keyboard in front of him. they watched as the metal panels around the large Crystal hissed and glowed with life as they slowly parted away from the brightly shining rock. “Though, who is to say I cannot ask the Crystal if he is still alive or not?” he asked the group as he walked around the long tables of computers and up to the said Crystal. With a large intake of breath, he bit his lip, pulling his gloves off and lifting his hand up to the rock. It took only an instant for the Crystal to react to his closeness to it. “Please, show me, please show me where he is and that he is still alive and well.” Ignis begged silently, wincing when the brand on his chest started to burn and ache.

For a long moment, he believed that nothing would happen, that perhaps his theory had just been that, a theory and something he used as an excuse to cling onto a sliver of hope that was fading away so quickly.  though, the instant he went to pull his hand away, his ears rang, and head ached before images flooded into his head. Nothing but barren, snowy landscapes of Niflheim from what he was able to see, though in a matter of seconds he saw him, he saw the man they believed to be dead running though the snow, firearms in hand and wounds covering his body as he scrambled onto a snowmobile before riding off with several Magitek soldiers following behind. with a loud gasp his yanked his hand away, falling back and hitting the ground as he breathed heavily. He was vaguely aware of the group who had followed him now kneeling on he ground at his side. Worryingly checking over him for any signs of injury. “Ignis, Iggy what happened? What did you see if anything?” taking a few more breaths, mostly to calm himself, he lifted his head to look at the concerned gazes of his friends, for a moment he could see sorrow making its way back into Nyx’s eyes. Ignis gave them a smile, which in turn earned him gazes of confusion. “Iggs?”

“He’s alive. Hes alive and currently escaping from Niflheim.” 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOF i am so sorry for this short chapter and long wait periods between chapters! I've been busy with personal life stuff, but i swear i have not forgotten about this story! and guess what? one more chapter to go before its finished!! so expect a fifth and final chapter later down the road everyone! thank you to everyone whos read this and gave a kudos, seeing people enjoy my writings, especially on this rare pair really kicks my motivation into gear to keep writing for these two. so again, thank you so much everyone, i hope you enjoy this chapter!

“Can’t say it was the worse method of escape ever _,”_

“Can’t say it wasn’t the best either, Fang.” Came the short reply, Luche huffed as he tried to curl further into the corner of the cave he was in, trying to keep himself warm. How in the hell did people survive out here was beyond his understanding. For the moment, however, he found himself at least out of the Facility, so things could be a lot worse. Though, being trapped in a barren snow wasteland covered in infected injuries wasn’t exactly ideal either. Beggars couldn’t be choosers, after all, so for the time being, Luche found himself huddled in this dark cave for the night, or at least until the snowstorm outside passed. Shivering the man flinched back, hitting his head against the rock and groaning in pain.

“Good gods relax it’s just me,” Fang hissed, gently cupping his face between her hands as she checked where the back of his head hit the rock wall. “As if you aren’t hurt enough…” she mumbled, clearly not happy with the condition he was in. she gave the man a sad look when she noticed he failed to relax, a clear indication what they had done to him in the three weeks he was held captive affected him more then he let on. “Hey, don’t fall asleep,” she said, gently pressing her thumbs into his bruised cheek, making him flinch and open his eyes to look at her. “You’re tired, I know you are. But you gotta stay awake, once this storm passes we must get moving. Gotta get you home, alright?” he gave her a slow nod, but didn’t make a move to do anything more.

Guilt ate at her, Fang wouldn’t lie about that. she could have easily stepped in sooner, but she didn’t think things would get as bad as they did and her own desire to screw over the God of Gods for going back on his word from so many centuries ago overpowered her usual Logic. But, what was done was done and now she at least had the man out of there. with a sigh, she moved to sit next to him, pulling him close so his head was resting on her shoulder at least. She kept her hand on the nape of his neck, gently massaging the area until she felt him relax for the first time in the three weeks he had been here in Niflheim. She kept her gaze on the light blue glow coming from the runic markings in the stone under them, she had almost forgotten that havens were not only in Lucis but all over the world.  they would be safe here for a spell, but once night fell into the later hours, as much as she would hate it, she would need to get Luche moving again. hours passed, her gaze had eventually moved to the entrance of the small cave. She watched the snowfall, listened to the raging wind all while keeping up the gentle moving of her fingers on the man’s neck. She was sure it was close to almost morning by the time the snowstorm had finally let up. at least Luche got some sleep in the night. With a sigh and a heavy heart, the woman moved her hand down from the nape of his neck to his shoulder, shaking him gently. “Hey, come on now, up.” she watched as his eyes opened, he seemed confused, dazed for a long moment before he realized where and who he was with. With a frown, she gently placed her hand on his forehead, wincing at the heat radiating off his skin. Despite the freezing conditions, he was burning up. “You okay?”

“Have to be,” he stated, wincing as he slowly got to his feet, Fang followed his movements, sticking close just in case. “I have to be…I need to get back to Insomnia, even if I die at its gates. I have to get back home.” By his tone, it was easy to tell how winded and tired he felt. With an intake of breath, he slowly started to walk out of their cave. She merely watched for a few moments as he staggered out of the cave and to where they had hidden the snowmobile, his words on repeat in her head, only making the guilt worse. “Fang, come on.” She startled slightly, blinking and noting he was seated on the machine, waiting for her to hop on as well.

“Right,” she mumbled, quickly walking over and swinging her leg over and took a seat, wrapping her arms around his middle gently. “We’ll get you home, alive. You have my word.” Luche merely scoffed, aside from that they didn’t speak again. each of them focused on one thing and that was to get the hell out of this frozen hell. The silence lasted for a long time, a few times Fang had to pinch the other’s arm to keep him awake. It was clear that he was exhausted, ill, he needed medical help that she couldn’t provide to him. “You know, you sort of remind me of an old friend of mine,” she stated, this got the man’s attention by the looks of it. “Well, when I knew him; he was a kid. Smart kid though, sweet thing. Stuck around with Lightning most of the time.”

“What was his name?” Fang smiled, letting her gaze drift over the area a quick moment.

“Hope Estheim. Sweetest, but most smart-mouthed kid you’d ever meet. He was smart, always seemed to know what he was talking about and was quick to figure things out of he didn’t know or understand something. Ended up a huge help to Serah and Noel later in life, and in another time.”

“You guys had a large group of friends back then, didn’t you?” That was something Luche noticed since meeting Fang. He ended up knowing a lot about L’Cie or other humans of the old world. Something he also noticed that Ignis didn’t know, at least not much. He had to wonder if that was intentional or if Lightning really didn’t see the need to tell him much of anything.

“Well, that depends on what time you’re talking about. During my time, it was six, with me included in that. with Serah, it was just her, Mog and Noel.”

“Mog?” Luche asked though Fang’s response was put on hold when the man pulled over, coughing roughly into his elbow. The dark-haired woman frowned and rubbed his back, she could tell by the force of the coughs and the shaking of his shoulders that this coughing fit was painful. After a few moments, the man cleared his throat and took a few deep and slow breaths. “Who and what is a Mog?” the olive-eyed woman laughed at that question. Because of course, Only Luche after nearly choking to death would be focused on that.

“Mog was a Moogle that was Serah had.”

“I’m sorry, a Moogle?”

“Yes, a Moogle. They existed back then. It's sad they died out before your guy’s time. They’re cute little buggers. Mog was special though, he could track down time-paradoxes and turn into a sword or bow for Serah to use. He was a good luck charm of sorts.” She explained, patting the man’s back before she climbed off the snowmobile and pulled him along. Luche followed easily and watched as she stretched her arms out. “A faithful companion, a good friend and never failed them. it was a shame when he passed. Serah was sad, so was Noel. Mog was very important to them, as he was to everyone.” She said, hands on her hips as she looked around the snow-covered trees and ground. He watched as she walked up to a tree, running her fingers over the bark.

“You miss them,” he said carefully, Fang paused. She did, she missed them all very much, since the choice of the new L’Cie she hadn’t had the chance to see her old friends and family. It was rare if she got to see Lightning these days with how busy Luche got and with how busy Ignis got as well. It also didn’t help that Lightning kept to herself, rather preferring to watch and see what happened versus sticking her hand in and leading. “I always assumed after death you’d get to be with your loved ones.”

“Yeah. That’s usually the case, at least with us it is.” She turned to face him now, arms crossed over her chest. He seemed to be waiting on more of an explanation on the matter. This gave her time to really take in his physical appearance. He was thin, just looked bone tried and worn so down. How he was still standing as well as he was, it was beyond her. she sighed, letting her arms fall to her sides as she took two steps forward. Reaching up she gently touched her fingers to his cheek, the touch caused him to flinch and pull back ever so slightly, but he was quick to halt movement again. “It’s the same for all living things, when we die, we go to the same place. Because in death we’re forgiven by whatever gods and or goddesses we believe in.” Luche raised a brow at her and grinned.

“So, Lady Luck for you?”  Fang laughed, gently pinching his cheek before she let her hand rest fully on his cheek, gently caressing the bruise just along his cheekbone. The gentle touch seemed to get to him, his eyes slipped closed slowly before he leaned into her hand. It was only for a moment, however, considering he quickly pulled and turned away to start once again coughing bloody murder into his elbow. “Shit- sorry.”

Fang sighed, rubbing his back gently. “Come on, let's get moving again. if I’m right we aren’t far from getting out of this snow wasteland.” Gently, but with some haste, she leads herself and the brown-haired man back to the snowmobile. “Next stop?”

“Cartanica train station. If that place even is up and running, which I doubt.” Luche responded as he drove off down the road. “With how bad that explosion was, I doubt its gotten back up in service, hell, there might be a chance we’ll run into Nifs there all things considered.”

“We’ll be ready for em, don’t worry.”

000

“And you’re positive he saw him alive?” Nyx rolled his eyes at the tone Tredd was using. It had been about a day or two since Ignis had managed to catch a glimpse of Luche. Since then, Ignis promised the group he would see what he could do to potentially help the man get back to Lucis, however, it was difficult to convince people he was even alive. No one had survived the attack on the train. No one. at least that was a report, Ravus had done what he could to get any other information that normally couldn’t and wouldn’t be released to the public. But even that came up short, there wasn’t much they could do right now. “Nyx, listen maybe…maybe it’s just time you guys let him go.”

“Excuse me?” he asked, turning to glare at the ginger, who in turn sighed.

“Look, I get it okay? Luche meant a lot to all of us. But there comes a time where you just must accept what reality is. He's gone, Nyx. Gone and he isn’t coming back.” Nyx could clearly see from the expression on the other man’s face that he didn’t like what he was even saying, but with how much time had passed, what are the chances that he was alive? What if he died trying to escape? What if that wasn’t even a real thing that Ignis saw? We don’t know how L’Cie work, we don’t know- “

“So, what? you're saying he could be lying about his own flesh and blood being alive?”

“I'm saying you need to let go, Nyx!” Tredd shouted, gaining the attention from the other Kingsglaive in the room. Even with eyes on them now, Nyx didn’t care, he glared at the ginger, waiting to see what he would say next. “You need to let go. Luche is gone. He's dead and he isn’t coming back. He’s just not. Even if he managed to get out of the place alive, who’s to say the harsh weather conditions didn’t kill him!? or that Nif soldiers found him and shot him on the spot!? Nyx, I get that maybe you and Ignis want to keep believing he's alive, but god damn its almost been an entire month with no actual sign or piece of evidence to prove that he's okay. get it through your head-“ the man stopped when Axis placed a hand on his shoulder. The ginger looked at the usually soft-spoken man who shook his head at him. “He died as a Glaive, Nyx…. This is part of the job, and as much as it hurts, we have to move forward.”

Nyx stood there, letting the words of the other man sink in. perhaps he had a point. They hadn’t been able to get anything done, much less anyone out of the city to even go look at the accident site. Ignis had been trying to convince the council that Luche was still alive and on his way back to Lucis, the least they could do was help the man get back home. However, they didn’t seem to be believing him, no matter who he got involved. Even Noctis tried his hand at talking to them, but even that didn’t work. _‘Holding on to a sliver of hope that doesn’t even exist. We know losing a loved one is not easy, but there is no point in chasing after ghost young Scientia, Highness. You best accept the reality as it is before your eyes.’_ those had been the words spoken by the councilmen earlier that day, Nyx had never seen Ignis look so tired, so desperate to have someone in a higher power believe him. Nyx was desperate too, but seeing his fellow Kingsglaive who seem to have just…come to terms and accepted what happened made the man think-

Maybe it was time for him to accept what happened. To let go and move forward like what the others were trying to do. Nyx flinched when he felt a hand land on his shoulder, he frowned at the look on Tredd’s face before he turned and walked off. Nyx would admit he felt bitter when the man wrapped his arm around Axis’ lower back and tugged him close.

“How much of that did you hear?” he asked, turning around and seeing Ignis standing in the doorway of the back entrance of the building. He looked so sad, tired, done with just everything but refusing to just give up like how so many wanted him to. The usual prim and proper Ignis was hidden under a veil of unkempt hair, no glasses, simple casual dark colored pants with a t-shirt. A clear sign he was not on duty as an advisor, he was just Ignis. A man who desperately was looking for help to get his brother back home. He watched as Ignis merely stared at him before looking as if he was about to walk out of the room. “Ignis,”

“All of it,” he stated, his hand still on the door, holding it open. “I want to say Tredd has a point…but I swear to you on my life, on that of all of Lucis that Luche is alive. Please Nyx, don’t give up on him. he needs you, he's going to need you so much when he gets back. And if you give up on him, I'm not sure I alone can help him like you can.” Nyx frowned, he walked forward, placing his hands on Ignis’ shoulders, squeezing them tightly for a moment. “Please, Nyx Ulric. Do not give up on him,”

“I'm not going to. Easy. You look paler than a sheet. You need to take a day to sit down and relax. we both need to sit and revisit this to think about what it is we are going to do. If the council won’t help us, then we can go get him ourselves,” the watched as the said advisor digested the words before nodding slowly. Nyx smiled, turned him around and started to lead him down the hallway. “Let’s get you back to Ravus, he’s been cranky thanks to you always being anywhere but at his side. I’ll come by tomorrow and we can discuss us sneaking out of Insomnia in the morning.” Ignis laughed softly.

“You are simply so casual over that particular part.”

“Eh, can’t blame me.”

“No, no I cannot.”


	5. Chapter 5

It was early morning, the sun hadn’t even risen yet, but for Nyx and Ignis this was perfect. The said Glaive was currently standing in front of the statue of the Rouge Queen. His eyes scanning the immediate area, though logically, he knew no one would come this way with how close it was to the refugee sectors. After escorting Ignis back to Ravus, they took the rest of that day off to get some proper rest.  And to plan a few things out, but this also meant that he and Ignis and to keep as many people out of the loop as they could. Nyx, however, did know one thing, Ignis was sure to have told Gladio, Prompto, and Noctis of this plan they hatched up, after all, someone with political power had to know where they were gonna run off to. The blue-eyed male let out a heavy sigh, he glanced up when he saw a dark-colored car pull up. moving away from the statue, he opened the door to the said Vehicle. “Took you a while. Ravus?” he asked, Ignis nodded as he stepped out from the car and stretched his limbs out.

“Indeed. He took a while longer to fall asleep then he usually does. Though I blame that on the fact that he’s had a lot on his mind with things involving Lady Lunafreya.” Nyx scoffed and shook his head. Ignis pouted a bit.

“Only you would still call her ‘Lady Lunafreya’ even though you and her brother are basically married at this point.” Ignis blushed darkly, looking away and pushing his glasses back up on his face. This got a laugh from the Glaive before he motioned for Ignis to get into the passenger seat. “Come on, mister soon to be Nox Fleuret. We got a L’Cie to go meet.” He explained, his tone less playful now as he got into the driver’s seat. Ignis hesitated for a moment, however, his hand hovering over the doors handle. “Ignis? Everything okay?” Nyx knew the answer to that, Ignis was worried, scared even for the fact that perhaps Luche really wasn’t alive or wasn’t going to be where he thought he was going to be. “Hey, Iggs.” The said green-eyed male looked up at the older man, Nyx gave him a reassuring smile. “Come one, don’t keep Lu waiting. He's dying to see you I’m sure.”

“I…” he once again hesitated, but nodded finally, pulling open the door and climbing in he sighed, relaxing. “Let’s go. The longer we wait, the high the chance those injuries he has will kill him.” Nyx frowned as he pulled away from the curb and started to drive down the street. He glanced out the window, he was pleased that the sun had yet to come up, not like it mattered considering he called in a favor to Petra about letting them through the west gate. He thanked the Six that Luche had managed to become such good friends with the Crownsguard officer, otherwise he wasn’t entirely sure how they were going to get out of the city.

“The wounds that bad?” Nyx asked, sounding worried now as they sped down the dark and empty streets. Honestly, he had expected more people to be out and about, considering the people of insomnia seemed to always be busy and rushing to get things done. His hands tightened on the steering wheel, how had Ignis managed to narrow down where Luche would be in a few more hours was beyond him, but he had done it. He supposed it was the Crystal that had managed to inform him of that, or perhaps it was just his natural intelligence that allowed him to figure that out. He startled slightly when he felt the younger man place his hand on his arm.

“I don’t want you to…stress out or worry so much. But his injuries are bad, some if not all are infected, a few cracked bones here and there. but for now, he’s breathing, he’s alive and on his way back here to the Crown City. Fang is taking good care of-“

“Who the fuck is Fang?” Ignis couldn’t help the snort that escaped him at the comment. Nyx usually wasn’t was a jealous man, after all the two only had eyes for one another and never showed interests in anyone else since they met. But he still found it funny how Nyx would get protective of his older sibling when someone showed an interest in him. It wasn’t like Luche couldn’t defend himself or even tell someone he wasn’t interested, it was just how Nyx was. He guessed it was part of the charm that Luche had fallen for. Ignis chuckled as he rubbed the man’s arm in a comforting manner.

“Fang is his guide. A past L’Cie like Lightning, in fact, the two ruled over Eos; which back then was called Grand Pulse as the dual Queens of old. Though, their time passed many, many, many centuries ago. how has she managed to take a physical form is beyond me. But she has and she is there helping him escape and helping to keep him going. Worry not, you are still the apple of his eye.” Nyx huffed, looking a little sheepish that he had worried over who Fang was. “She is a lot like him, especially when it comes to thinking. Both are stubborn, both will do what people say they cant just to spite them.” Nyx smiled at that, he opened his mouth to respond but decided to wait as they pulled up to the city gates.

“Petra,” Nyx greeted as he rolled the windows down, the said man nodded to him as he opened the back door of the car and tossed in a backpack. “Thank you, really for all of this. I'm not sure how we were gonna pull this off.” The man sighed, as he looked between the two.

“You weren’t going to. These gates are guarded to hell and back. Listen, just be careful. Those Nifs would probably follow him as far as they can just to get their hands on whatever information he may or may not have. You better bring him home, you hear? He’s got a lot of people waiting for him, and the twins love their Uncle Lu and I don’t want to tell them that he won't be coming back to see them.” Nyx nodded, he had almost forgotten that Petra had named Luche the godfather to his twins. He had met them once or twice and the two absolutely adored their Uncle. Sabel and Glen, a Girl and boy respectfully, well behaved and smart. He wasn’t shocked that Petra and his wife Annie had made Luche their godfather, after all, he and Luche were close when Lu was still a Crownsguard. So it was natural that Annie would take a liking to him as well. With a long sigh, Nyx nodded, the two shook hands.

“I’ll bring him home alive. You have my word, Petra. We’ll see you in a few hours.”

“Got it, Ulric. Good luck to you both.” with that, he pulled away, rolling up the window Nyx sped off down the highway. He glanced at Ignis for a moment and then at the rearview mirror.

“We’ll be there soon, Lu. Just hang on a little longer…”

0000

Honestly, Luche didn’t know why he had thought once in Lucis things would be so much easier. It was obvious from the start that it wasn’t going to be that easy. If easy at all, the said brown-haired man hissed in pain as he rolled behind a set of large rocks. His hand was pressed firmly against his hip, blood oozed from the wound, he bit his lip tightly, carefully listening for the soldiers that had been following him.  Fang had ended up disappearing halfway through the trip. He assumed that her time was up and now he was on his own. He breathed heavily and pushed away from the stone, limping his hissed and looked back, sighing when he noticed that no one had followed or found him just yet.  “Damn it, shit…come on, come on just please don’t give out on me yet…” he mumbled softly as he limped across the desert sands of Hammerhead. He looked down at the wound on his hip, frowning at the sight of how much blood was coming from the wound.

“ _Keep going, help will be here soon. The Nifs are not that far behind.”_ Luche whined, before collapsing to the ground, he groaned in pain and rolled onto his uninjured side. He looked up, his vision blurry. “ _Luche! Get up! your going to tell me you’re just gonna give up after all of that!? you didn’t cross nations to just die in the middle of a desert! You still got a focus to complete and you can't do it dead! Get on your feet!”_ the Glaive shook his head gently, he laid there motionless, breathing shallowly and trying his best to keep his eyes open. He knew Fang just wanted him to keep going, to keep pushing forward. But his body couldn’t, he didn’t have the energy to even lift his head up to look around. Hell, he was struggling to even keep his eyes open. “ _Luche?”_

Luche gave a weak chuckle before he bit his bottom lip and shook his head again. “I…I cant. By the six I cant, Fang.” He laughed before it was cut off by a violent cough which had him hacking up blood. He laughed again, though it broke off into a sob. “Try as I may…I literally have no strength to even get up.” he scoffed, as he dragged his hand up and stared down at the ring he had on his thumb. It was a gift from Nyx for his birthday about two years ago. it wasn’t anything super fancy, but he loved it and Nyx looked so happy that Luche wore It every day on his thumb unless they were out on deployment.  This time, however, he had forgotten to take it off before he left. Or maybe it was a small part of him that told him to keep it on, that something was going to happen and he might as well take something that reminded him of Nyx. The Ring was a perfect reminder, all things considered, he let out a heaving breath as he pulled the ring off and held it tightly in his hand before bringing it close to his chest. Ducking his head, the man cried softly, holding the ring so tightly his hand shook and knuckles turned white. He didn’t care for anything, he didn’t care for the bullet still in his hip, he didn’t care for the hot Hammerhead sun beating down on him, he didn’t care for Fang’s frantic cries to get up, to run. He didn’t care for the sound the of Magitek engine, he didn’t care for the sound of the metal footsteps, he didn’t care for the sound of a car engine speeding to halt.

Nor did he care for the sound of all too familiar voices as he fell into unconsciousness.

000

“How is he!?” Nyx asked as he swerved the car out of the way of a rain of bullets, he growled and glanced in the rearview mirror at the Magitek ship following after them, his eyes then fell to Ignis who was in the back seat with Luche, the man attempting to stop the bleeding from the wounds he had littered all over his body. when they caught sight of the Nif Soldiers surrounding a body, Nyx immediately knew it was Luche, he didn’t hesitate to run a few over with the car, dents and scratches be damned. But he nearly fell to his knees at the condition his lover was in. Though he was happy Ignis had managed to get his older brother into the car before they started to speed off. “Ignis!”

“Just keep driving! Focus on that while I try to see if my magic can heal him some until we can get him past the safety of the wall!” he shouted back, his hands hovering over the older male’s chest and abdomen, a faint green glow came from his hands and gently flowed down over him. Ignis watched as the more minor cuts and bruises easily started to close, he grunted when the car suddenly swerved to the left, causing him to fall over to the floor. He growled and shook his head. “Roll down the window!” he said, Nyx didn’t even bother asking why he merely did as he told and watched as Ignis halfway climbed out of the window, and in his hand was a magic flask. The Glaive couldn’t help but grin, no less then a moment later he could see bright flashes of Lightning magic as they made their mark and caused heavy damage to the ship. “That shouldn’t be bothering us any longer. Step on it, he needs medical help, more then what potions or healing magic could do.”

“Don’t gotta tell me twice,” Nyx easily responded. When he looked off to the side the man nearly hit the brakes when he noticed a pink haired woman sitting in the front passenger seat. Though when he noticed that she didn’t seem to be a threat he merely kept going, but it wasn’t difficult to tell that Nyx was clearly nervous. “Wanna tell me who the hell you are?”

“That is Lightning, Goddess, Saviour Queen of Old. Former L’Cie.” Ignis said from the back seat, the man looked at the woman, who nodded curtly. “She’s my guide. In a way. Worry not, she is no danger to us. How far?”

“We’re about to pass the blockade.”

They didn’t speak after that, they stayed silent, clear that they were extremely tense over Luche’s condition, every now and then Nyx would glance back at the two, he could see Ignis holding his brother’s hand, holding it close to his chest as he spoke softly to him, begging that he hang in there just a while longer. He bit his lip, hands tightening on the steering wheel when they arrived at the City gates, Nyx sighed when he spotted Petra. The man didn’t even need to stop them to know it was indeed them if the dented hood and bullet holes on the car were anything to go by. The ride from the gates to the Citadel seemed long, too long for Nyx’s liking.

“He’s a L’Cie, meaning he can take a long more physical damage than the average human. However, that doesn’t mean he is immune to anything.” Lightning finally spoke, her eyes fixed on the road in front of them, she clearly didn’t seem worried like they did, maybe he wasn’t in such danger like they believed, but it's not like she was telling them that either. she was calm, cold almost by the way she spoke and by the aura she gave off. She was indeed a Queen, the way she seemed to be carrying herself screamed royalty and demanded respect. “Don’t miss your stop,” she said, the said, Nyx was quick to pull into the Citadel parking, he wasn’t shocked to see the Prince, Gladio, Prompto, and all of the Kingsglaive along with a medical team waiting for them. “Peace, he will be alright now.” turning to speak to her, he sat there shocked that she was just gone. Shaking his head he climbed out quickly as he moved to the back doors, he pulled it open, helping Ignis out and gently handing him over to Ravus who was quick to take him into his arms. Nyx carefully but swiftly pulled Luche into his arms. He wasn’t shocked to see the looks of horror and anger on the faces of his fellow Glaive, he wasn’t shocked when Luche was taken from his arms and placed on the stretcher. The doctor was quickly shouting orders as they wheeled him off.

“Nyx Ulric, Ignis Scientia,” the two flinched at the tone of the king before they turned to look at him, for a moment he looked angry, then he sighed, he walked up to the two and gave them a reassuring smile. “Rest now, leave it to them. they are the best Insomnia has to offer.” Nyx finally allowed his body to slump backward before falling to the ground, his face in his hands, Ignis at his side quickly, leaning on him, his face pressed against his shoulder. “He is home now. rest easy. no one will harm him here.” Nyx nodded but didn’t look up, he took a few deep breaths, he moved his arm and wrapped it around Ignis, letting out a half-choked sob as he and Ignis pressed their heads together. They sat there surrounded by their friends, eventually, they both were lead into the building, taken to respective rooms to get washed up and rested.

000

The first thing Luche noticed when he woke up was that he wasn’t being held up. his arms rested comfortably at his sides, his head on a soft pillow, the blankets pleasantly warm. Though he would have loved to have the oxygen mask off his face, and he would have preferred that the lights where off while the currants remained open so natural sunlight could get in, so he closed his eyes quickly after that. another thing he noticed was that well, he wasn’t in the middle of a Niflheim base. he would be lying if he said he wasn’t freaking out, but the panic settled when he heard soft humming coming from his right. With great effort, the man turned his head and was met with a sight that brought tears to his eyes.  sitting next to the bed looking like he hadn't slept in days was Nyx, the man dressed in a pair of sweatpants, and t-shirt, his hair more or less a mess. He couldn't help but smile weakly, happily at the all too familiar song he was singing. “I love you too much to live without you loving me back. I love you too much, heaven’s my witness and this is a fact. I know I belong when I sing this song. There’s love above love and it's ours, cause I love you too much. I live for your touch, I whisper your name night after night. I love you too much, there’s only one feeling and I know it’s right.” Luche didn’t even know that Nyx remembered that cheesy song, they saw the movie one time and it was all it took for the man to remember that song. He let his eyes drift closed, knowing he would stop the moment he noticed he was awake, and to tell the truth, he did not want the man to stop singing. He had gone a long time without hearing his voice. “I know I belong when I sing this song. There’s love above love and it ours, cause I love you too much. Heaven knows your name, I've been praying to have you come here by my side. Without you a part of me is missing, just to make you my whole I will fight.” Luche chuckled weakly, the mask fogging up.

“I Know I belong when I sing this song. There’s love above love and it's ours cause I love you too much.” He sang softly, voice muffled slightly by the mask, but he refused to open his eyes, he knew though that Nyx was staring at him in shock. He smiled, feeling a sense of safety and warmth when he felt the older man placed his hand over his own. “I love you too much, I love you too much, heavens my witness and this is a fact. You live in my soul, your heart is my goal. There’s love above love and its mine cause I love you, there’s love above love and it's yours cause I love you, there’s love above love and it's ours if you love me as much.” He knew that he probably sounded like shit, but when he opened his eyes he could clearly see the tears in those blue eyes had fallen in love with so many years ago. he squeezed Nyx’s hand as best he could with the energy and strength he had. He chuckled softly when Nyx brought his hand up to his lips and placed a gentle kiss to his knuckles, rubbing his stubble covered face against his hand. “I'm not dreaming, right? This is real…?”

“It’s real, babe. It's so real. Your home, you're safe, I have you back here with me.” He mumbled, kissing his knuckles after every word. Luche sighed, the mask fogging up again as he felt his eyes sting. He felt droplets of cold tears fall on his hand, he once again squeezed Nyx’s hand. “Six, I thought I had lost you, Lu…you’ve been out for a week, in and out of sleep. they didn’t think you'd make it over the first night-“

“Sh,” Luche cut in, taking in a deep breath and wincing as he did so, but exhaled slowly. “Sh…im okay, we’re together again. Nyx can you?” he tugged on the man's hand, he was so glad that the older understood what he wanted because he wasted no time in carefully helping the younger move over on the bed before he easily climbed in and joined him. he was so mindful of his injuries, though, after a moment or two, Luche was comfortably resting against Nyx’s side. They stayed like that for a while until Luche heard the door open, next thing he knew he was surrounded by the all of the Glaive, even Ignis was there, though he got the right to shove the others out of the way and take Nyx’s spot on the bed. he chuckled and was so relieved when his younger brother removed the oxygen mask he coughed a few times but settled quickly with the cool air of the room. “So, what’s the verdict?”

“That you are a suicidal idiot? That you best believe that I will not be allowing you to go back into Glaive work until I know you are fully recovered? That you better not even try to weasel yourself out of medical leave early?” Luche laughed at the words that spilled from Nyx’s mouth, he glanced up at the group and blushed slightly when Crowe moved forward and kissed his forehead.

“We are so happy that you are all right…by the Six you had us scared to death…we thought you had died, Lu. Don’t you ever do something like that again, you hear?” logically, he knew that he couldn’t keep a promise like that, but he also knew that every single last one of them knew that as well. But it didn’t mean that they didn’t ask for the sake of feeling a little bit better. So, Luche merely nodded slowly and this got a smile out of her. “Good…now rest, you still need sleep. you’ll be back home in no time.”

As it turned out, it took another three weeks for him to be allowed back to his shitty apartment with Nyx. He rolled his eyes fondly when he was helped to take a seat on the couch. He appreciated that the Glaive all had stepped in to help him as best they could, cooking, cleaning the apartment, going with him to sit outside and enjoy the sun, or even keeping him company. However, Nyx was dotting him much more than usual, and he knew exactly why that was the case. Luche startled when he felt a hand land on his knee. “Oh, shit- I'm sorry, easy I keep forgetting-“ Luche frowned, giving Nyx an apologetic smile before he leaned forward, cupping his lover’s face between his hands. “You okay?”

“Perfectly, now that I am home and with you.” Nyx snorted, but happily accepted the tender kiss that was given to him. “Nyx, thank you for coming for me. You and Ignis could have gotten seriously hurt, but you two didn’t care. So, thank you, Hero.” He gently stroked his thumbs over the man’s cheeks. “Thank you, so much.”

“I’ll always come for you. not matter where you are, where they send you or where they take you. you best believe that I am going to go after you every single time. I’d run all day and I’d run all night. I love you to the moon and back, till the sun falls out of the sky.” Luche smiled, pressing their foreheads together, feeling almost like on cloud nine when he felt Nyx slip a metal band over his ring finger.

“And I love you. you’ll be my sun should it fall.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and that is the End of Running All Night!! thank you, thank you, thank you sooooooo much to everyone who showed me the support to keep writing this story! keep checking in for any and more additions to the Two L'Cie/Brothers AU and the Nyche series! if you have suggestions you can drop them off in my ask of my tumblr which is; https://kingsglaive4hearthandhome15.tumblr.com/ or you can even comment below! once again, thank you to everyone who has followed this story!


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